The climate bill’s dead. Really dead

The climate bill’s dead. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) conceded today that he doesn’t have the 60 votes necessary this year to pass a carbon cap, even a watered-down, scaled-back one. So the hope is that next year will somehow be better — and it’s not a good sign when climate advocates sound like Chicago Cubs fans.

Looking for another cheery thought? Andy Revkin floats the idea that it may take a Republican president to muster enough Senate votes to pass a bill.

It’s not like we didn’t see this coming; it’s been clear for quite some time now that there wasn’t an appetite for the measure, even among Democrats. But there remained some hope that a less-ambitious carbon reduction plan could make it in the package, which is also expected to include a renewable energy standard, oil-use reduction measure, and new regulations on the oil industry. But Reid’s comments are the final death blow for climate legislation, at least for this Congress.

In remarks following the announcement, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), the biggest champion of this issue in the Senate, tried to put a hopeful spin on the situation, pledging to try to push a carbon cap at a later date. While the bill Democrats will bring to the floor next week is an “admittedly narrow, limited bill,” Kerry said his work on climate will continue.

“Even this morning, Senator Lieberman and I had a meeting with one Republican who has indicated a willingness to begin working towards something,” Kerry said. “Harry Reid, today, is committed to giving us that opportunity, that open door over the next weeks, days, months, whatever it takes to find those 60 votes. The work will continue every single day.”